Rutgers Food Innovation Center 450 East Broad Street, Bridgeton, NJ 08302

"I can’t say enough how much the Rutgers Food Innovation Center helped my co-founder and I - both scared and lost and clueless of where to begin - find our way in the confusing-but-exciting beverage industry. We had no prior knowledge of the industry, and began our journey as Rowan University students seeking to create our own “internship” in our effort to avoid being trivial coffee runners at a stagnant and unexciting corporate workplace. The tools and insight provided at the FIC have been invaluable, starting with the Food Business Basics seminar that we attended in the fall of 2017. The instructors helped us to navigate the manufacturing process and FDA regulations as we honed in on the overall business direction and strategy. Needless to say, a year and a half after that first crash course, we launched our company, Topos Teas, in five Whole Foods locations and are continuing to refine our marketing and business model as we expand into many more. We continue to reach out to the FIC for support, where their expert staff are more than willing to offer a helping hand and guidance. We couldn’t have gotten Topos into Whole Foods without their support, and I hope that others will reach out to the FIC and find it as beneficial as we did! Cheers to the whole Rutgers FIC team!"

"Extremely helpful resources available and knowledgable staff team. Full-scale FDA and USDA shared-use production facility. As they are a non-profit, cost is very nominal and reasonable for startups, as compared to those for-profit consultants. I also really enjoyed the one-day crash course. Highly recommended!"

"Just spoke to Sho (a cold call) looking for some info. Got some amazing insight into things I should be thinking about and contacts / organizations I would not have found on my own. Clearly some amazing expertise here and a team that's willing to help entrepreneurs. Signed up for the Food Business Basics class and looking forward to learning more there."

"I had a very lengthy and very informative conversation with Mr. Sho Isalm about a product that I'm looking to develop. I really appreciate him taking his time and speaking to me about the process and all is in involved in coming out with a product like mine. He gave me very good tips on moving forward and growing my product and hopefully using Rutgers Food Innovation Center to launch my product. Thank you for your expertise and advice. Nate Rivera."

"I am not in the food industry but interested in bringing a product to market. I took the Food Business Basics workshop and was thoroughly impressed with every aspect of the course as well as guidance and feedback on my concept. Subsequent follow up with Client Services Director Sho Islam helped zero in on issues that I had not properly considered and needed to be aware of. I have lots of work to do but hope to interact with the program in the near future."